non-black PoC have to be very very careful when engaging with Black People, whether it be in dialogue or in general.
cause ya’ll, we have a history of taking part in the marginalization/oppression/murders of black people, just to uphold white supremacy. cause sometimes our every action includes stepping on Black People to feel just a lil better about ourselves, just a lil closer to whitey.
and i understand our cultures and countries have been drenched in anti-blackness and the legacy of colonization remains, but youre constantly being told that your actions and words are oppressive and anti-black, and u continue devaluing a Black Woman’s hurt or struggles cause some how you feel your opinion is more valid in a dialogue about anti-black racism on BLACK WOMEN, you are shit.
so im saying, think before u say, and if you end up saying…fucking listen yo. listen to someone who is way more experienced in such.
i.e. Black Women
Put a face with the name
This is George Zimmerman.
We as a community need to put a face with the name. Everyone needs to see what this sociopath, white supremacist, child murderer looks like.
This grown man^^^^ claims self defence against this unarmed child.
Trayvon Martin.
Spread this image so everyone knows what he looks like. Re-blog, take the photos yourself and make more posts, do whatever you can do.
This violence has a face and he should know what it is like to be watched suspiciously wherever he goes.
He should no longer have the privilege to blend in with the crowd.
He should no longer have the privilege to feel safe and wanted in his own community.
He should no longer have the privilege to be given merritt based on the color of his skin, a ” four year degree” and nothing else.
We see you George Zimmerman… all of us see you.
For those who think blacks in America are imagining racism or blowing things out of proportion:
Fact: Black youths arrested for drug possession are 48 times more likely to wind up in prison than white youths arrested for the same crime under the same circumstances.
Source: “Young White Offenders get lighter treatment,” 2000. The Tennessean. April 26: 8A.
Fact: Black and Latino men are three times more likely than white men to be stopped by the police and have their cars searched – even though white men are four times more likely to have weapons or drugs.
Source: Matthew R. Durose, Erica L. Schmitt and Patrick A. Langan, Contacts Between Police and the Public: Findings from the 2002 National Survey. U.S. Department of Justice, (Bureau of Justice Statistics), April 2005.
Fact: White men with a criminal record are more likely to be called back for a job interview than black men with no record, even when their education and experience are the same.
Source: Pager, Devah. 2003. “The Mark of a Criminal Record.” American Journal of Sociology. Volume 108: 5, March: 937-75.
Fact: Students of colour are far less likely to be put in honours courses even after you take test scores and grades into account.
Source: Gordon, Rebecca. 1998. Education and Race. Oakland: Applied Research Center: 48-9; Fischer, Claude S. et al., 1996. Inequality by Design: Cracking the Bell Curve Myth. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press: 163; Steinhorn, Leonard and Barabara Diggs-Brown, 1999. By the Color of Our Skin: The Illusion of Integration and the Reality of Race. NY: Dutton: 95-6.
Fact: Students of colour are more than twice as likely to be suspended or expelled from school even though they are not much more likely to break school rules than whites.
Source: Skiba, Russell J. et al., The Color of Discipline: Sources of Racial and Gender Disproportionality in School Punishment. Indiana Education Policy Center, Policy Research Report SRS1, June 2000; U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System: Youth 2003, Online Comprehensive Results, 2004.
For those who think White Americans have a good feel for how racist their country is:
Fact: In 1962, 85% of whites thought that black children in their community had just as good a chance of getting a good education as white children.
Source: The Gallup Organization, Gallup Poll Social Audit, 2001. Black-White Relations in the United States, 2001 Update, July 10: 7-9.
Fact: In 1969 nearly half of all whites (45%) believed that blacks had a better chance getting a good-paying job than they did.
Source: Newsweek/Gallup Organization, National Opinion Survey, August 19, 1969.
Those last two are from the 1960s – a period of history far enough in the past for even whites to see the racism that went on.
The above comes from an excellent article by Tim Wise, “What Kind of Card is Race?” (2006). As he puts it:
In every era, black folks said they were the victims of racism and they were right. In every era, whites have said the problem was exaggerated, and we have been wrong.
reblog since this post got more notes than some of the others here
This letter is one of THE BEST THINGS I HAVE EVER READ!
This is the response letter to a white man asking his former slave to return and work for him….
Dayton, Ohio,
August 7, 1865
To My Old Master, Colonel P.H. Anderson, Big Spring, Tennessee
Sir: I got your letter, and was glad to find that you had not forgotten Jourdon, and that you wanted me to come back and live with you again, promising to do better for me than anybody else can. I have often felt uneasy about you. I thought the Yankees would have hung you long before this, for harboring Rebs they found at your house. I suppose they never heard about your going to Colonel Martin’s to kill the Union soldier that was left by his company in their stable. Although you shot at me twice before I left you, I did not want to hear of your being hurt, and am glad you are still living. It would do me good to go back to the dear old home again, and see Miss Mary and Miss Martha and Allen, Esther, Green, and Lee. Give my love to them all, and tell them I hope we will meet in the better world, if not in this. I would have gone back to see you all when I was working in the Nashville Hospital, but one of the neighbors told me that Henry intended to shoot me if he ever got a chance.
PHALLIC RAGE: Yeah, I have No Tolerance for Ignorance either.
It’s so weird that you followed me for so long (someone that writes more personal posts about race than anybody I’ve seen on Tumblr & does it without cussing or vitriolic language) and you still got nothing out of it except to tell me that my experiences with racism are made up in my head essentially, because I’m creating a self-fulfilling prophesy.
No, I’m 19. I’ve been alive and aware for those 19 years. And I’ve seen and experienced tons of racism. You have no idea what that is like to have to deal with racism everyday and figure out how you’re not going to turn bitter and hateful towards people who CONTINUALLY negate your worth and humanity…
You say that you don’t look down at white people, but in the same breath you accuse all of them of being ignorant. Your plight will not be taken seriously unless you recognize your own racism and work against it. I would also suggest educating yourself on proper English and grammar. You don’t want people to think of you as an ignorant person, so try not sounding like one.
STOP IT.
And if you want to lecture someone on their grammar, at least make sure you have your own ducks in their respective rows first. Your reading comprehension is absolutely abysmal if instead of the main topic and relevant details of the OP’s post, all you’re focusing on is her use of “proper English”.
And FYI, “proper” English and its respective grammatical rules vary by location and time period. I speak 3 languages and had no problem understanding her, so what’s your excuse?
(Source: a-place-to-stand)
“They said I ‘acted too white.’ I thought this was the most ridiculous thing. I wasn’t trying to be white; actually, I was being myself. I felt that it was crazy to make fun of someone just because they don’t act like you, and especially to try to tie it to race. You can’t say an entire race acts the same; that’s just ignorant and unfair.”
Dear black people,
y yall gotta be so loud for? Oh and PS: fried chicken aint all that great.
There’s never a shortage of rebloggable posts for Friendly Racist Friday.
For those who think blacks in America are imagining racism or blowing things out of proportion:
Fact: Black youths arrested for drug possession are 48 times more likely to wind up in prison than white youths arrested for the same crime under the same circumstances.
Source: “Young White Offenders get lighter treatment,” 2000. The Tennessean. April 26: 8A.
Fact: Black and Latino men are three times more likely than white men to be stopped by the police and have their cars searched – even though white men are four times more likely to have weapons or drugs.
Source: Matthew R. Durose, Erica L. Schmitt and Patrick A. Langan, Contacts Between Police and the Public: Findings from the 2002 National Survey. U.S. Department of Justice, (Bureau of Justice Statistics), April 2005.
Fact: White men with a criminal record are more likely to be called back for a job interview than black men with no record, even when their education and experience are the same.
Source: Pager, Devah. 2003. “The Mark of a Criminal Record.” American Journal of Sociology. Volume 108: 5, March: 937-75.
Fact: Students of colour are far less likely to be put in honours courses even after you take test scores and grades into account.
Source: Gordon, Rebecca. 1998. Education and Race. Oakland: Applied Research Center: 48-9; Fischer, Claude S. et al., 1996. Inequality by Design: Cracking the Bell Curve Myth. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press: 163; Steinhorn, Leonard and Barabara Diggs-Brown, 1999. By the Color of Our Skin: The Illusion of Integration and the Reality of Race. NY: Dutton: 95-6.
Fact: Students of colour are more than twice as likely to be suspended or expelled from school even though they are not much more likely to break school rules than whites.
Source: Skiba, Russell J. et al., The Color of Discipline: Sources of Racial and Gender Disproportionality in School Punishment. Indiana Education Policy Center, Policy Research Report SRS1, June 2000; U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System: Youth 2003, Online Comprehensive Results, 2004.
For those who think White Americans have a good feel for how racist their country is:
Fact: In 1962, 85% of whites thought that black children in their community had just as good a chance of getting a good education as white children.
Source: The Gallup Organization, Gallup Poll Social Audit, 2001. Black-White Relations in the United States, 2001 Update, July 10: 7-9.
Fact: In 1969 nearly half of all whites (45%) believed that blacks had a better chance getting a good-paying job than they did.
Source: Newsweek/Gallup Organization, National Opinion Survey, August 19, 1969.
Those last two are from the 1960s – a period of history far enough in the past for even whites to see the racism that went on.
The above comes from an excellent article by Tim Wise, “What Kind of Card is Race?” (2006). As he puts it:
In every era, black folks said they were the victims of racism and they were right. In every era, whites have said the problem was exaggerated, and we have been wrong.
Positive Racism is Still Racism: No, I’m Not A “Strong Black Woman”
This is a blog post from kittiekattie on livejournal:
You know, some people will start with the basics. Some will start with the negatives. Some will start with fandom (and when I get into that, oh the rage will fly). I’m going to start with the flip side. The positive stereotypes.
See, a lot of people ignorantly seem to think that racism only flows towards the bad things. That racism only involves when people are calling people bad names, and cursing them, and the like. But there’s a just as insidious version of racism that people seem to neglect a lot. The positive stereotypes. The “good racism.” The “Oh, you should be this, and that’s good,” racism. And the problem with positive stereotypes is that they lock you down just as bad as the negative ones, if not worse with some.
We know the one about the Asians: They’re smart, and bright, and good at math, and they work hard and achieve well, and are quiet, and blah. They get a lot of praise, in fact, as America’s Model Minority. (And this is used to hold down other races, but that’s part of the Interracial racism shtick). But what if you’re Asian and you know, you don’t want to be an overachiever, you just want to be you? What if you’re shitacular in math? What if you’re loud, and bouncy, and boisterous? What if you (gasp!) HATE anime? What if you actually open your mouth and say the shit on your mind? What if you’re not grateful to have been adopted at the age of 2 and raised in the US by Bobby and Sally Whitebread? What if you’re sick of being the model minority that comes over and does so good (because boy, those Asians are just so hardworking and smart)? What if you don’t like rice, and you don’t like sushi, and you are getting sick and tired of having people ask you how to say their name in Chinese (and what the fuck is with that anyways, because you’re Korean)? You’re just as held back by people giving you GOOD stereotypes. By people thinking that Latino men are macho and willing to take on work (any work, even dirty shit). By thinking that Black men are strong and intimidating.
And there’s the sexual ones. Not all Latinos/Latinas are hot blooded sexy masters of the bedroom. Not all black men are hung like horses and like their women big and thick. Not all black women are freaks or sexless, sassy women—some of us need hugs and kisses and gentle love too. Asian men aren’t sexless geeks or walking yaoi boys. And the Asian women get a lot of shit. You get dumb white mofos who complain that American women are too uppity and loud and liberated, and they go and try and seek out Asian women to make their little submissive wifie—and then they run into one that will cut a bitch for trying to make her into their pinkerton fantasy and they think she’s not really Asian.
As for the title, that’s me. I’m not the strong black woman. I’ve had depression at least 4-5 times in my life I can pinpoint. At one point, I attempted suicide on a near ritual basis for damn near four years. I was a cutter—and not the show off kind like some are. I wore sweatshirts and cut where no one could see, you know, because I was ashamed of my shit. I was emo before emo was cool and people thought you were just weird when you sulked around all emo and shit. I have a maelstrom of crazy in this head of mine, and not all of it is the nice crazy. Some of it is the stuff that I swear, if I saw myself on tape when I have my freak outs, I’d be scared of it. I’m getting better. But before—did I ever get help? Did I ever consider psychiatric help, even when it was free on my college campus? Did I talk about my problems, my sexual abuse, anything like that? No. I swallowed my pain and pushed it inside and I snapped under the pressure and had something very akin to a nervous breakdown.
And one major reason I never sought help? Because the message in society is that psychiatric is for those “weak ass white people” and a “real” black woman can make it without any of that shit. Because black women are strong. They don’t need to pay no one a shit load of money to talk about they problems, they just need to get up and deal with it (with Jesus, even, cause you know black women are godly like that). And so, when my mind finally snapped at the age of 16 or so, and stayed snapped til I met Brent, I just suffered under my crazy. I didn’t think I could get help.
Because black women are supposed to be strong. We’re the backbones of black society. We raise the boys to men and keep the girls in line, and take care of our men, and we’re the good parents and the care takers and the ones who take on the burdens and what does that sound like oh that’s right, that’s a PACKMULE. Black women don’t need emotions, they’re too busy dealing with REAL problems. Because you know, it’s not that the mind isn’t real or anything.
So you have generations of black women, with crazy in the mind, and no one will help us up because they act like we’re too strong to have emotions. There have been times where I cried myself sick, and people ignored me because they though I was handling it, and I was crying because I was begging people to help me, to get me out of my despair, and they wouldn’t even notice. Because I’m supposed to be strong. Strong meaning “you can do it yourself, no one cares when you cry.”
And then when I break, people look around me and go “Whoa, didn’t see that coming” when I’ve been screaming out signs the whole descent into Batshit City. Maybe if you weren’t too busy telling me what I’m supposed to do and what’s so good about my blackness, you’d have noticed that I’m hurting.
It’s just as racist to call a Latino man “macho” and “passionate” as it is it say they’re stealing our jobs and won’t speak English. It’s just as racist to say an Asian person is a hard worker as it is to say they can’t drive.
And it’s just as fucking racist to tell me I’m a strong black woman who doesn’t hurt as it is to call me a nappy headed ho.
—TashaFrom here.
Wow. I can relate so, so much.
RaceMash
Basically a blog dealing with racial issues, mostly in America but with some posts about other countries as well. While there will be many posts dealing with the black/white binary, I also hope to shed much focus on race issues concerning First Peoples, Latinos, Middle Easterners, South Asians, East Asians, Southeast Asians, people who are bi or multiracial, and any other minority groups I may have forgotten to mention.
